RAG MusicClassic
Lovely classics

Timelessly beautiful classical masterpieces. Recommended classical music.

A showcase of stunningly beautiful classics, all at once!

There are so many beautiful pieces in classical music, aren’t there?

This time, I’ve selected works that are especially beautiful—“classics that are just too beautiful.”

It’s a lineup of masterpieces that have been passed down through a long history.

When you think of beautiful classical music, many people imagine something calm and refreshing, but I’ve also picked pieces not only for solo piano but also for voice and full orchestra.

Now then, please take your time and enjoy!

Masterpieces of classical music that are simply too beautiful. Recommended classical music (61–70)

At the seaside at nightHeino Kasuki

Kaski: By the Seaside at Night, Op. 34-1
At the seaside at nightHeino Kasuki

How about a short piano piece that seems to turn the shimmering specks of light along a Nordic night shore into sound? This Finnish work lets the piano’s high register ring with clarity, making you feel as if you’re gazing at twinkling stars in the night sky.

Its allure stands out in the recording left by pianist Izumi Tateno in April 1999, where the delicate tones seep deep into the heart.

The piece’s gentle, dreamlike melody—its hallmark—will help you forget the swelter of summer.

Recommended for those who wish to spend a cool, tranquil moment, listening to beautiful piano sonorities in the stillness.

“Ombra mai fu” from the opera “Xerxes”Georg Friedrich Händel

An aria from Act I of Handel’s opera Xerxes.

King Xerxes I of Persia, resting comfortably in the shade of a tree, sings of his love for the plane tree’s shade, declaring that never before has there been such dear, gentle, and pleasant shade.

It’s a piece that evokes dappled sunlight, a gentle breeze, and the enveloping comfort of a soothing canopy of leaves.

Seaside at Dusk, H.128: No. 3 “The Stormy Seashore”Bohuslav Martinů

Martinů: At the Seaside at Dusk, H.128: No. 3 [Stormy Seashore] [Naxos Classical Curations #Chic]
Seaside at Dusk, H.128: No. 3 “The Stormy Seashore”Bohuslav Martinů

This piece depicts waves breaking on a seaside at dusk and the sweep of a blustery wind through deft piano arpeggios.

Composed by Bohuslav Martinů in 1921, it is a short work for solo piano included on the album “Evening on the Sea-shore, H.128 and 3 other pieces.” Within its richly resonant, impressionistic colors, a classical framework—the rondo form—breathes, creating a striking dialogue between nature painting and structural elegance.

Its dynamic development evokes the subtitle “Storm,” and the design, which regains calm after a virtuosic cadenza, leaves a strong impression.

It is a gem for anyone who, in a summertime moment, wishes to immerse themselves in piano music that is both dramatic and refreshingly cool.

Symphony No. 2, Movement IIISergei Rachmaninov

Tadaaki Otaka (conductor) · Tokyo Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra / Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 2, Movement III / Orchard Hall Subscription Concert, July 21, 2014
Symphony No. 2, Movement IIISergei Rachmaninov

A moving melody woven from beauty and melancholy seeps into the heart.

Beginning with a clarinet solo and expanding to the full orchestra, the sonic world shakes the listener’s soul.

Its lyrical line, which evokes nostalgia and distant memories, feels as if it were singing of a beloved person.

It is also featured in the film “Bridget Jones’s Diary,” known as a classic that colors romantic scenes.

Recommended for those who wish to heal the pain of heartbreak or to bask in memories with someone dear.

Premiered in January 1908 to great success, it is also famous as a work that symbolizes the composer’s rebirth.

Ave MariaJ.S.Bach/Gounod

A hymn published in 1859 in which the French composer Gounod added a main melody over the accompaniment of Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I, No.

1 “Prelude.” Also known as “Gounod’s Ave Maria,” it is beloved worldwide as one of the three great Ave Maria settings, alongside “Schubert’s Ave Maria” and “Caccini’s Ave Maria.” The Latin text used for the lyrics opens with the words spoken by the angel Gabriel to Mary in the New Testament Annunciation, where he foretells the conception of Jesus.